MEET THE TEAM
Dr. Kylie Smith
Co-Founder
Dr. Smith has been studying the factors influencing coral transplant survival and reef fish behavior in the Florida Keys since 2012. Specifically, she studied the impacts of consecutive bleaching events, Hurricane Irma, and disease on coral transplants during her graduate work at Clemson University. Dr. Smith maintains partnerships with Mote Marine Lab, Keys Marine Lab, FWC, the Coral Restoration Foundation, Clemson University, Jacksonville University, Florida International University and other organizations to maximize the survival of both coral and herbivore transplants to restore ecological health to these reefs.
Mike Goldberg
Co-Founder
Michael Goldberg has been a professional scuba diver for over 25 years and an avid diver for over 30 years. After a 12-year career in finance and an 8-year stint learning the scuba industry in the British Virgin Islands, Mike and his wife moved to Islamorada from Virgin Gorda and started Key Dives in 2004. With over 10,000 dives, he has seen just about everything – from diving with humpback whales to the tiniest of nudibranchs to reefs with close to 100% coral coverage. Sadly, he has also witnessed the loss of over 95% of our corals. This devastating loss has inspired Mike to create an avenue for recreational divers and the local Keys community to help rebuild our ailing reef.
Reanna Jeanes
Operations manager
Originally form the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in South Carolina, Reanna earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences with a Minor in Music from Clemson University in 2019. She learned to SCUBA dive in this area so she could conduct undergraduate research in the Conservation of Marine Resources Lab under Dr. Michael Childress, and was directly supervised by I.CARE’s co-founder, Dr. Kylie Smith, while she earned her PhD! Her undergraduate research focused on the survival of coral transplants in the Middle Florida Keys, especially related to the presence of proximal macroalgae.
Reanna continued her research journey by earning her Master’s of Science under Dr. Nikki Fogarty at the University of North Carolina Wilmington in 2022. Her thesis focused on measuring the physiological effects of climate change on the staghorn coral, Acropora cervicornis. She previously served as the Monitoring Coordinator, and is now the Operations Manager. Reanna conducts and manages the survival data on all of I.CARE’s coral and sponge outplants, analyzes the ecosystem-wide survey data from all 8 I.CARE outplant sites, assists with grant reporting and permits, coordinates I.CARE’s weekly operations, and helps manage our internship program.
Katie Barnes
Communications & Outreach manager
Katie is originally from New Bern, North Carolina, and earned a B.S. in Plant Biology from NC State University with minors in Marine Science and Animal Science. While at NC State, she spent a semester at the Center for Marine and Science Technology (CMAST), researching North Carolina's coastal ecosystems. Her independent research focused on habitat restoration of the endemic, endangered Crystal Skipper butterfly (Atrytonopsis quinteri), documenting native plant species as potential food sources, identifying flight patterns, and citing population abundance.
After graduating, Katie moved to the Florida Keys to serve as REEF’s Communications & Engagement Fellow, where she learned to SCUBA dive and developed extensive knowledge of Caribbean fishes. She joined I.CARE in 2024 as Education & Outreach Coordinator and now serves as Communications & Outreach Manager. In this role, she organizes community events, manages I.CARE’s digital and in-person outreach, oversees social media and newsletters, and communicates the organization’s scientific work to the public.
Sami Levine
Coral Propagation manager
Sami is originally from Port Washington, New York, where she grew up down the street from the Manhasset Bay. This is where her curiosity for marine ecosystems began. Following this passion, she received a B.S. in Marine Science/Biology at the University of Miami. While studying in Miami, she had the opportunity to regularly dive Florida’s coral reefs, study fluid flows around local stony corals in a marine biophysics lab, and she even got some field experience studying abroad in the Galápagos Islands.
These experiences left her wanting to try coral reef field work after graduating, and this desire led her to I.CARE! During Sami’s I.CARE internship, she learned an abundance of skills preparing her for the world of coral restoration. After her internship, she was hired on as a Coral Biologist and now oversees I.CARE’s coral propagation program. In this position, Sami manages our collection of Corals of Opportunity (COOs), propagates corals via fragmentation, and takes care of our corals during their grow-out.
Dr. Bobbie Renfro-Price
Director of Sponge Research development
Bobbie Renfro-Price, Ph.D., is I.CARE’s postdoctoral researcher studying sponge ecology and restoration and is the creator and executive lead of our sponge restoration program. Bobbie received a B.S. degree from The University of Texas (Hook ‘em Horns!) just down the road from her childhood home in Austin. A course on marine botany introduced Bobbie to the fascinating world of coral reefs!
The course professor, Dr. Ken Dunton, inspired Bobbie to seek her Master of Science degree, which she received from Auburn University (War Eagle!) in Dr. Nanette Chadwick’s Lab. Bobbie first realized how stunningly beautiful sponges are while earning her PADI scuba instructor certification in Honduras. Bobbie went on to study sponges for her doctoral research under world renowned sponge ecologist Dr. Janie Wulff at Florida State University (Go Noles!). In 2021, while still in her doctoral program, Bobbie began collaborating with I.CARE to design sponge restoration methods that are now the foundation of our sponge restoration program!
Mackinzey Whittlesey
Coral Biologist
Born and raised in Tennessee, Mackinzey ended up spending much of her life in Michigan prior to making her way to the Florida Keys. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Biology and Sustainable Aquaculture from Unity Environmental University, focusing on building resilient coastal communities through regenerative, ecosystem-based solutions.
Her hands-on reef restoration experience began on the Mesoamerican Reef through a marine conservation internship with the Whale Shark Oceanic Research Center (WSORC). Here, she earned her PADI Divemaster certification alongside Bay Islands College of Diving. This was her first chapter in her love story with coral. Later, she joined Reef Renewal USA in the Florida Keys, where she found her identity within the field of coral restoration.
Mackinzey is a part of I.CARE’s Coral Propagation Team and helps with the collection of Corals of Opportunity (COOs), propagates corals via fragmentation, and takes care of our corals during their grow-out.
Sarah Smith
Sponge Restoration Program Manager
Sarah calls Ohio home, but she has spent most of her life moving to different states, often away from the ocean. She found her love for marine science during her undergraduate studies at Florida State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Biological Science. While at FSU, she worked as a research assistant in the laboratory of world-renowned sponge biologist Dr. Janie Wulff. In the Wulff lab, Sarah assisted I.CARE’s very own Dr. Bobbie Renfro-Price (a doctoral student at the time) with developing sponge restoration methods for I.CARE. Sarah also conducted her own independent research for her honors thesis on components of the life history and ecology of the zoanthid Palythoa caribaeorum on Florida's Coral Reef.
After graduating, Sarah became a Coral Restoration Intern with I.CARE and supported the sponge program throughout the summer months. Since her internship, Sarah has worked as a Marine Science Instructor at Catalina Island Marine Institute (CIMI), educating school groups on marine science and Catalina Island biology.
After two years away from the Florida Keys, Sarah is excited to be back at I.CARE as our Sponge Restoration Program Manager. She is ready to conduct work at the forefront of Caribbean reef sponge restoration and to join all of the incredible restoration practitioners working to save Florida’s Coral Reef. Her favorite sponge is the branching vase sponge, Callyspongia aculeata. She can always find something hiding in one of the tubes, such as shrimp, hermit crabs, and brittle stars! They are truly a living hotel.
